IDA Grant: US $13.5 million equivalentProject ID: P133449Project Description: The objective of the project is to improve basic communal and municipal services in participating cities and towns.For mor... Show More +e information, please visit: http://www.worldbank.org/projects/P133449?lang=en Show Less -

In a previous post I argued that European economic integration remains a key driver for Turkey’s future economic prospects. Specifically, the Customs Union agreement between the EU and Turkey, which t... Show More +urns 20 at the end of this year, could give Turkey’s competitiveness a new boost if it was extended to cover services, agriculture and procurement. But to do so, the Customs Union itself would require a facelift. An agreement originally designed as a stepping stone towards full EU membership needs to be modernized to take into account changing trends in world trade and in EU-Turkey relations.Widening the Customs Union to include services and agriculture would produce welfare gains of up to USD 2 billion, even without taking into account the significant dynamic gains from greater investment and faster productivity growth. By liberalizing trade in services in particular, Turkey could boost its overall competitiveness because the cost and quality of services matter as an input into manufacturing as well. Including procurement in the Customs Union or accession to the WTO’s General Procurement Agreement would open new markets to Turkey’s highly competitive contractors and experienced civil engineers.But a widening of the Customs Union would require that asymmetries in its design are addressed. One concern is that Turkey needs to adopt EU Law without participating in its design. Indeed, sometimes Turkey may be informed only with significant delay about a change in Common Market rules. Improved information sharing and consultation mechanisms are critical to ensure the Customs Union functions smoothly. While Turkey cannot be granted voting rights, it could be invited as an observer to more of the EU’s committees, including to key policy bodies such as the Trade Policy Committee or the General System of Preferences Committee. Informal information sharing mechanisms, such as “Friends of Turkey” groups could also be considered. A second concern, which has received much attention in Turkey, is that Turkey needs to open its markets to countries with which the EU has signed Free Trade Agreements without a clause guaranteeing reciprocal market access. Turkey is especially worried about the prospect of exclusion from the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). Because some tariff peaks still exist between the EU and the USA in sectors such as textiles and clothing for instance, Turkey could lose from preference erosion. For the case of a “shallow” TTIP considering only the elimination of all bilateral tariffs between the EU and the USA, we estimate welfare losses from preference erosion to be around USD 130 million. However, there is a flipside to this: to the extent that TTIP includes liberal rules of origin and that the EU and the USA agree on a system of mutual recognition of quality standards, Turkey through its Customs Union with the EU could obtain significantly improved access to the US market which would more than compensate the losses from preference erosion. Conversely, Turkey’s losses would be far greater if TTIP was to include regulatory harmonization, without recognizing Turkish quality certificates.However, the real risk of exclusion from TTIP lies in services. This is the area where the gains from greater cross-Atlantic trade would be highest. Because Turkey’s own services trade has not been opened, however, the country would not be in a position to benefit from this trade creation effect. Turkey is a big trader in traditional services such as transport and tourism, but in modern services, including finance, legal services, accounting, design and IT services, it punches well below its weight.A widening of the Customs Union to services would allow Turkey to capitalize on its competitive strengths, e.g. in retail and transportation services, while creating welcome competitive pressure on modern service industries. The result could be an upgrading of service quality and competitiveness similar to what happened in manufacturing as a result of the Customs Union some 20 years ago. At the same time, this would prepare Turkey for the opening of its services sector in the context of potential accession to TTIP.A final conclusion can be drawn. To the extent that modernization of the Customs Union would lay a sound foundation for Turkey’s accession to TTIP, a clear commitment by the EU and the US that TTIP will be open to the accession of third countries could provide encouragement for the work on the Customs Union to proceed without delay. One virtually unanimous conclusion from the Brookings workshop that motivated this sequence of blogs was that the resulting deeper economic integration between Turkey, the EU and the USA would be a good thing for all three parties. -------------------------Blog originally published on 16 March, 2015 on Brookings: http://www.brookings.edu/blogs/future-development/posts/2015/03/16-turkey-europe-raiser Show Less -

ZAGREB, March 17, 2015 - Mr. Frank Heemskerk, Executive Director of the World Bank Group, made a two-day visit to the Republic of Croatia to see the economic progress the country has made. Mr. Heemske... Show More +rk, a Dutch national, presides over the so-called “Dutch Constituency” in the World Bank Group’s Head Quarters in Washington, representing the interests of 13 countries, including Croatia. This was his second visit to Croatia after his appointment to this function in April 2013. Mr. Heemskerk participated in the launch workshop for the Social Protection System Modernization Project, jointly organized by the Ministry of Social Policy and Youth and the World Bank. There he heard first-hand which reforms the authorities will undertake to improve the social protection of the most vulnerable groups in Croatia, while making the system itself more efficient and less costly. At the workshop, Mr. Heemskerk discussed with Ms. Milanka Opačič, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Social Policy and Youth, and Mr. Siniša Varga, Minister of Health, the importance of this reform program to better target the most vulnerable in a financially sustainable way.Mr. Heemskerk also met with Mr. Boris Lalovac Minister of Finance who is also the Croatian Governor for the World Bank Group, Mr. Boris Vujcic, Governor of the Croatian National Bank, and attended an event with business community representatives organized by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Discussions focused on the most pressing challenges Croatia is facing in speeding up economic recovery, while at the same time maximizing the benefits of European Union membership and improving the business environment. During the visit Mr. Frank Heemskerk, Executive Director of the World Bank Group, stated that, “The Croatian economy and its people are facing some serious challenges after years of recession. I am encouraged, however, to see how the Croatian government and the private sector are partnering with the World Bank Group to boost economic recovery. Unfortunately there are no quick fixes. But the collaboration, in which Croatia draws from the global expertise and financing opportunities offered by the World Bank Group help to make the Croatian economy more efficient and competitive, while safeguarding the most vulnerable people in the country.”Prior to taking on the position as Executive Director of the World Bank, Mr. Heemskerk worked in both private and public sectors. From 2011 to 2013, he was a member of the Executive Board of Royal HaskoningDHV, an independent, engineering and project management consultancy with 7,000 staff members and 100 offices worldwide. From 2007 to 2010, he served as Minister for Foreign Trade of the Netherlands and was responsible for the Post, Telecom & ICT, Consumer Policy, and Tourism.From 2003 to 2006, he was a member of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands, where he was the spokesperson for the Dutch Labour Party (PvdA) on financial supervision, economic affairs, and health care reforms. Mr. Heemskerk is also a co-author (with Professor Dolf van den Brink) of a book on the impact of ageing on Dutch society (2006). Show Less -

CAIRO, March 17, 2015 - World Bank Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer Sri Mulyani Indrawati concluded a three-day visit to Egypt where she participated in the Economic Development Conferenc... Show More +e aimed at attracting international investors. She led high level meetings on advancing the ongoing dialogue on the country’s reform agenda with government officials, and reiterated continued commitment to support the people of Egypt. Hafez Ghanem, World Bank’s Regional Vice President for the Middle East and North Africa, was part of the high level delegation.Dr. Indrawati met with government officials during her stay in Egypt including Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab, development partners, private sector experts and civil society representatives. In her discussions, Dr. Indrawati underscored the importance of staying the course on reforms and building institutional capacity to restore private sector confidence and gain the people’s trust. Unleashing the potential of the private sector can create the jobs Egyptians need to build better lives for themselves. “Egypt faces many challenges as a result of the tumultuous changes of the last four years but transitions can pave the way for socially inclusive and equitable economic reforms,” said World Bank Managing Director Sri Mulyani Indrawati. “For the next five years, we have agreed with the government of Egypt on focusing on creating jobs through the private sector especially for young people, and improving governance to achieve social and economic progress.”Following the participation at the conference, Dr. Indrawati met with a group of young leaders to listen to the challenges they are facing and get an insight on their views on development priorities and how the Bank can best support Egypt. The delegation also visited Upper Egypt and met with civil society representatives and local investors in Aswan. World Bank-supported site visits included the Enhancing Access to Finance for Micro and Small Enterprises and Emergency Labor Intensive Investment projects which focus on employment creation and service delivery for underserved communities. “In Aswan, we were pleased to engage with various stakeholders on how best the World Bank Group can support job creation and improve service delivery and contribute to the development of Upper Egypt,” said Hafez Ghanem.The World Bank Group in Egypt: The current portfolio of the World Bank Group in Egypt includes 26 projects for a total commitment of US$5.4 billion in FY15, including 17 IBRD lending operations ($5.27 billion) and 9 major Trust Funds ($139.6 million). The World Bank finances projects for faster delivery of benefits to the people of Egypt in key sectors including energy, transport, water and sanitation, agriculture and irrigation as well as health and education. Between FY11-14, IFC committed a total of almost $1.1 billion in 20 projects (of which $392 million is mobilization). IFC has focused on supporting companies with the ability to create jobs, boosting access to finance for small and medium enterprises, and demonstrating Egypt's long-term potential to investors. IFC has also worked on promoting regulatory reforms designed to spur economic growth; and boosting the skills of young job seekers.In FY2013, MIGA issued a guarantee for US$150 million, reinsuring the United States Overseas Private Investment Corporation’s coverage to Apache Corporation for the exploration, development and production of crude oil and natural gas helping to keep up the supply of energy with the growing domestic demand. Show Less -

World Bank approves $20 million to help Benin remove barriers to investment and minimize distortionary policies for structural transformation and a boost in growthWASHINGTON, March 17, 2015--The World... Show More + Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved a US$20 million (more than FCFA10 billion) International Development Association (IDA[i]) credit to boost the Government of Benin’s effort to promote good governance and strengthen private-sector competitiveness.Today’s financing supports the Tenth Poverty Reduction Support Credit (PRSC-10), the second in a programmatic series of three development policy operations designed to help accelerate and extend opportunities for equitable growth by addressing key challenges in governance, public financial management and business-climate reforms.“The PRSC-10 will create a healthy, competitive business environment conducive to investment in the country’s most promising sectors. Removing administrative barriers to investment and formalization, reducing transaction costs, alleviating infrastructure bottlenecks, and leveling the playing field by minimizing distortionary policies and interventions are all essential to facilitating the structural transformation of the economy and permanently boosting the country’s growth”, said Ousmane Diagana, World Bank Country Director for Benin.The new budget support program, which is fully in line with Benin’s third poverty reduction strategy (SCRP-3[ii]) will help improve public financial management in an effort to promote good governance and public sector accountability. The focus will mainly be on budget execution and public procurement processes, while also supporting efforts for good governance and anticorruption. PRSC-10 will also strengthen private sector competitiveness by enhancing the business environment, improving port operations and customs performance, and fostering agricultural growth and diversification.Effective and efficient delivery of government services and sound management of public resources are key to achieving the two goals of PRSC-10: “The role of government in fostering growth is not only to provide a suitable environment for the private sector to prosper; it also consists of delivering effective public services that maximize the impact of available revenues”, Diagana added. He also indicated the World Bank’s willingness to continue to support Benin’s government in that sense and advised that: “Strong governance and responsible public financial management grounded in a commitment to transparency and accountability are critical to ensure that prosperity is equitable and shared widely and that growth is closely linked to poverty reduction in Benin”.PRSC-10 will be released in a single tranche. Show Less -

One important systemic problem is the way the resources are allocated. Budget planning does not reflect service delivery needs, recent reforms, or Serbia’s accession aspirations. Resource planning is ... Show More +not well coordinated, even worse, instead of collaboration there is often occasional competition among stakeholders responsible for different resources. As a result, productivity is low and the judiciary represents poor value-for-money for citizens (and for the State itself). Given the current fiscal environment, the justice system will need to learn to ‘do much more with less’ through better planning and coordination in resource allocation and execution.A further systemic problem is that budget allocations do not consider court performance, hence providing no incentives for courts to perform better. Based on international experience, strengthening performance management in courts by recognizing and rewarding higher-performing courts and implementing performance improvement plans for under-performing courts would help improve services. The good news is that, against the odds, production and productivity in a number of courts has improved over the last three years. There are several courts – often outside of Belgrade, like in Subotica Basic Court and Vrsac Basic Court – which perform well against many important indicators. Unfortunately, this good performance is often driven by the personal initiatives and goes unrecognized. Sharing and replicating the lessons learned to other courts is easy and not costly, isn’t it?The report also recommends the introduction of a standardized approach to routine aspects of case processing such as checklists and templates for simple cases. It also advocates tightening the scheduling of court hearings, including conducting hearings throughout the day.The Review highlights that justice is rather unaffordable for average citizens, largely due to high attorney and court fees. In particular, the poor are not well served. According to the World Bank, these problems can deter investment and cause a drag on the business climate. Over two-thirds of businesses report that lack of affordability alone is either a great or moderate obstacle to their operations. My colleagues here, among other things, recommend simplification of the court fee structure and standardization of the court fee waiver process to ensure basic service delivery for the poor. I am here highlighting some of the findings of my colleagues. For those of you who want all the details, please visit here.Looking ahead, a series of tough decisions will need to be made to align the justice system with EU standards, while remaining largely within current fiscal envelopes. Fortunately, Serbia is entering the negotiation phase for Chapter 23 with a sound knowledge base – indeed, better informed than any candidate country that has gone before it. There is light at the end of the tunnel. With the requisite commitment and will, alignment with EU levels of performance is achievable. Show Less -

WASHINGTON, March 16, 2015 – The World Bank Group’s (WBG) Board of Executive Directors today approved a total of US$22 million to strengthen the management and governance of fisheries as well as impro... Show More +ve the handling of fish that is brought to shore in Mauritania and Guinea.Today’s project that focuses on these two countries is a component of the ongoing West Africa Regional Fisheries Program (WARFP), a nine-country, multi-phase series of projects approved by the World Bank in 2009 to ensure the productivity of West African water’s wealth of fish resources is maintained at its best level. The other countries under implementation included in the program are Cabo-Verde, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Senegal, and Sierra Leone. “Fisheries are a key contributor to food security, nutrition and job creation for Guinea and Mauritania, who are among the poorest and most vulnerable in the world. Fish and fish products accounts for an average of 17.9% of animal protein. WBG estimates suggest that improved fisheries governance and resource management could generate at least an additional $2 billion per year in sustainable benefits,” said Colin Bruce, the World Bank Director of Regional Integration for Africa. “Promoting sustainable use of fisheries, linking smaller operators to new value chains and improving regional cooperation over shared resources will support the vulnerable and the poor that depend on fisheries as well as contribute to the initial recovery phase from the Ebola crisis.”The coastal populations of Mauritania and Guinea suffer from challenges such as too little economic growth, hunger, poverty and exposure to climate change impacts. The current Ebola crisis in Guinea has been affecting the country since December 2013, closing Guinea’s terrestrial borders, disrupting air travel, and drawing on government resources. The project, targeting primarily the artisanal segment, is expected to actively contribute to the initial recovery phase from the Ebola crisis by supporting the vulnerable and the poor that depend on fisheries and fish resources.The project will continue to promote regional cooperation to improve regional fisheries management focusing on reducing Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fishing and help countries address other shared challenges. Safeguarding fish resource productivity and developing the value chain for fish production will expand the fishers’ livelihoods as a step towards reducing poverty.The WARFP has already made great strides to improve fisheries management and marine health in the other countries that are a part of this program. In Liberia, the incidence of illegal fishing has been reduced by 83%. Improved management is also generating visible impact in early WARFP countries. The introduction of community-led fisheries management in Senegal has been successful in restoring the resources. Some communities have reported a 133% increase in catch efficiency. Almost all countries have reached a 100% registration rate for the artisanal fleet.To leverage these previous investments Mauritania will receive $12 million from IDA and $7 million in co-financing trust funds from the Global Environment Facility (GEF). In addition Guinea will receive $10 million to strengthen country-wide institutions and activities, improve fishers’ livelihoods, and fight illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing.“According to USAID, West Africa alone could be losing as much as US$1.3 billion annually from Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing,” said Berengere P. C. Prince, the World Bank Group’s WARFP Task Team Leader. “The West Africa fisheries are part of a larger marine ecosystem and shared by all countries of the region. Today’s project will support regional coordination among Mauritania and Guinea as well as the other countries, fight Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fishing and improve the health and sustainability of the fisheries.” Show Less -

WASHINGTON, March 16, 2015 — The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved a EUR 36.2 million loan (US$44 million equivalent) for the Real Estate Management Project for Serbia. The... Show More + loan will support Serbia in ensuring accurate, complete, and electronically available information on real estate property.Although Serbia made significant progress in improving its real estate sector over the last decade, its real estate services still lag behind European Union (EU) standards. Investments in geodetic infrastructure are needed, and Republican Geodetic Authority (RGA) services need to be made more accessible to all, including vulnerable groups. The data held by RGA, including on land, ownership, buildings, utility lines, and various forms of maps, is vital information for most government services, and needs to be made complete and more easily available. In addition, while RGA’s mandate has been further expanded to cover activities such as property valuation and building registration, there are concerns about its business model, and, therefore, the sustainability of the services it provides.“The proposed project supports the Serbian government’s new economic reform agenda, helping it to create a better business environment and new jobs, as well as advancing its European integration,” says Tony Verheijen, World Bank Country Manager for Serbia. “Better access to real estate information will attract investors and reduce transaction cost and time. In addition, development of real estate markets will boost small- and medium-enterprises that use real estate as collateral.”Property tax yield in Serbia is relatively low, with about 0.6 percent of its GDP collected annually in property taxes, against an average of 1.8 percent in OECD countries. Serbia lacks the complete and accurate data necessary to establish the tax base, it uses outdated valuation methods, and its tax rates are low.The first component of the project will address these issues by improving the system for annual property taxation through the development of a sales price registry for real estate, software to process data from the sales price registry, and a Mass Appraisal pilot program on property tax rolls and collection procedures in local governments units. The project will also establish a building registry, and will improve the real estate valuation framework by improving the quality of education for valuers and adopting internationally recognized standards for valuation.The second component of the project will focus on e-governance for enabling access to real estate information, while the third one aims at helping RGA become better and more sustainable institution. Show Less -

WASHINGTON, March 16, 2015—The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved a EUR 200 million loan for the Romania Secondary Education Project (ROSE), which will be implemented by the Roma... Show More +nian Ministry of Education and Scientific Research over seven years. ROSE aims to increase Romanian students’ chances of successfully completing tertiary education.While Romania’s high school enrollment rate has increased in the last decade, so has its dropout rate. University enrollment has also been declining, linked closely to poor performance on the Baccalaureate.“Although enrollment in upper secondary education in Romania is high, the transition to tertiary education is hindered due to increasing dropout and poor performance on the Baccalaureate. The ROSE project was designed to help the Government of Romania address these issues,” said Janssen Edelweiss Nunes Teixeira, World Bank Senior Education Specialist and Project Team Leader.By focusing on schools and student groups at risk of failure, ROSE aims to reverse these trends and increase the rate of successful completion of tertiary education.“Data show that approximately 100,000 school students either failed to pass or did not take the Baccalaureate in 2013-2014,” said Elisabetta Capannelli, World Bank Country Manager for Romania. “There are 20,000 university students who were at risk of dropping out in the first year of study. This project is designed to help these students. With a proper education completed, they can play a fundamental role in Romania’s future, helping their country to sustain its economic growth, while it is confronted with a shrinking and aging population.”ROSE activities include grants to public high schools to support academic interventions, such as remedial courses, tutoring, and counselling. Support will also be provided for extracurricular activities, renovations, in addition to systemic interventions to improve the quality of upper secondary education, including curriculum revision, teacher training, and revisions to national learning assessments and examinations. ROSE also finances grants to public universities to support activities such as academic interventions, guidance and coaching, as well as high school-university summer bridge programs and learning centers.In addition to ROSE, the World Bank has assisted the Government of Romania to tackle the education and skills agenda through technical assistance focusing on pre-university per capita funding, functional reviews of the pre-university and higher education, and capacity building in impact evaluation for evidence-based policy advice under a regional technical assistance for higher education. Since 2013, the World Bank has also supported the preparation of education strategies, such as on lifelong learning, reduction of early school leaving, tertiary education, and strengthening the administrative capacity of the Ministry of Education and Scientific Research through reimbursable advisory services agreements that are also helping the Government of Romania meet EU ex-ante conditionalities to access EU 2014-2020 program funds. Show Less -

IBRD Loan: US $243.1 million equivalentTerms: Maturity = 20 years, Grace = 19.5 yearsProject ID: P148585Project Description: The objectives of the project are to improve the transition from upper seco... Show More +ndary into tertiary education and increase the retention in the first year of tertiary education in project-supported education institutions.For more information, please visit here:http://www.worldbank.org/projects/P148585?lang=en Show Less -

WASHINGTON, March 16, 2015 - The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved the following project: China - Sichuan Chongqing Cooperation: Guang'an Demonstration Area I... Show More +nfrastructure Development ProjectIBRD Loan: US $100.0 millionTerms: Maturity = 30 years, Grace = 5 yearsProject ID: P133456Project Description: The objective of the project is to improve Linshui County and Qianfeng District infrastructure and investment support services.For more information, please visit here: http://www.worldbank.org/projects/P133456?lang=en Show Less -

WASHINGTON, D.C., March 16, 2015 — About 275,000 residents in China’s Sichuan province will have access to better infrastructure services through a $100 million loan approved today by the World Bank G... Show More +roup’s Board of Executive Directors.The new Sichuan Chongqing Cooperation: Guang’an Demonstration Area Infrastructure Development Project will support basic urban infrastructure in Linshui County and Qianfeng District of Guang’an Municipality, such as storm water drainage, pipelines and treatment facilities, and green transport corridors. The project will also help the towns conduct strategic environmental and social impact assessments, improve the planning and management of capital investments and municipal assets, and develop investment promotion services. It will also provide industry skills training for low-income residents.“By improving basic urban services while making plans to manage their natural, financial and human resources, and their infrastructure, these towns have the potential to develop as part of the extended metropolitan region of Chongqing,” said Joanna Masic, World Bank’s Senior Urban Development Specialist and the project’s task team leader. “The Bank-financed project will help the local governments with urban development planning by drawing on lessons learned from international and domestic experiences, as well as from the World Bank’s global and China operations.”Guang’an Municipality, the birthplace of Deng Xiaoping, is in southeast Sichuan province, near the urban center of Chongqing Municipality. Its urbanization and income levels are below the national average. Its total population has declined in the last few decades as many migrated to other areas for work. But its urban population has steadily grown, especially in towns closer to Chongqing.Linshui County Town and Qianfeng District Town, in particular, have seen steady growth in GDP per capita and manufacturing jobs. These towns have the potential to benefit from the expansion of development in the Chongqing metropolitan region, and play a role in Sichuan-Chongqing cooperation, including the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Zone. Established in 2011, the zone covers 31 districts and counties in Chongqing and 15 cities in other parts of Sichuan. It is expected to become an important economic center in western China, as one of the country’s strongest comprehensive economic zones like the Yangtze River Delta.The two towns need better basic urban services and job opportunities for current and future residents, as well as for migrants who have returned. They could see faster development and demonstrate the benefits of regional cooperation by devising strategies to tap into the Chongqing economy, as it evolves and creates spillovers beyond its administrative border. Show Less -

“Safety components are present in all our projects,” explains Irakli Litanishvili, the deputy chairman of the Roads Department of Georgia. “During the project design, we carry out a safety audit. As y... Show More +ou know, improved roads increase the speed of vehicle movement and in this context adequate traffic safety measures need to be implemented.” Show Less -

IDA Grant to Guinea: US $12.0 million equivalentIDA Grant to Mauritania: US $10.0 million equivalentGEF Trust Fund Grant to Mauritania: US$7.0 million equivalentProject ID: P126773Project Description:... Show More + The objective of the project is to build on the ongoing WARFP approved in 2009 to strengthen governance and management of fisheries and improve handling of the fish brought to shore in Mauritania and Guinea. Show Less -

TUHELJ, March 16, 2015 – To set the stage for the successful implementation of the EUR70 million Social Protection System Modernization Project, and to ensure the commitment of all stakeholders to the... Show More + reform effort, the Ministry of Social Policy and Youth and the World Bank organized a Project launch workshop, engaging with two hundred stakeholders from various institutions responsible for the implementation of reforms.Croatia has a complex and mature social protection system that covers all main social risks and reaches a large share of the population. However, the system is fragmented, costly to administer, and only a small share of its spending is targeted to the poorest. In order to improve the system, the Government, in partnership with the World Bank, initiated a wide-ranging and complex set of reforms of the social protection system supported through the Social Protection Modernization Project.Speaking at the launch of the workshop Milanka Opačić, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Social Policy and Youth of the Republic of Croatia, emphasized that, “The Government of the Republic of Croatia is undertaking comprehensive reforms of the social protection system in order to protect the most vulnerable and the poorest, and to, at the same time, make social protection more efficient and less costly. This is an important segment of the Government’s National Reform Program, and the Social Protection System Modernization Project is a perfect complement to the Program. The project will be implemented through a loan from the World Bank, an institution with which we have excellent cooperation. A Project Preparation Advance in the amount of almost USD1.25 million was approved for the preparation of the Project, and guaranteed funds for the implementation of the Project amount to EUR70 million.”The implementation of the Social Protection System Modernization Project will be carried out from 2015 until 2018. Beneficiaries of the project will be those mostly affected by poverty (beneficiaries of the Guaranteed Minimum Benefit, child benefits, other family benefits, and the unemployed), disabled, and children and adults in social welfare institutions.Opačić continued, “By focusing on the poorest members of our society, we intend to support the eradication of extreme poverty in our country. In addition, this is a Project that will, at the same time, be to the benefit of social benefits recipients and to the benefit of all taxpayers in Croatia, as we expect to significantly reduce expenditures caused by errors and fraud and we expect to use social assistance funds more efficiently.”“We hope that, with the support of this Project, we will be able to build the foundations for additional reforms such as the modernization of the administration of social protection,” said Opačić. “As a Minister overseeing this Project, I will make sure, together with my associates, that its implementation proceeds in line with the agreed objectives, and I trust that the World Bank and the Ministry of Finance, as well as all other involved institutions – the Ministry of Public Administration, the Ministry of Labor and Pension System, the Ministry of Health and its agencies, including the Central Disability Certification Body within the Institute for Disability Certification, Professional Rehabilitation and Employment of Persons with Disability, the Croatian Institute for Pension Insurance, the Croatian Institute for Health Insurance, the Croatian Institute for Health Insurance, Croatian Employment Services and the Labor Inspectorate, will continue to provide their full support and assistance.”The Project will support reforms in five key areas that are necessary to improve the social protection system with the aim of achieving the following results:The administration of social benefits will be consolidated under a one-stop-shop, providing a single service point to beneficiaries to apply for and receive a range of cash benefits, reducing the time and cost of application for the beneficiaries.Certification of disability will be unified and harmonized thorough the establishment of a Central Disability Certification Body within the Institute for Disability Certification, Professional Rehabilitation and Employment of Persons with Disability (IDCPREPD), resulting in a faster, more transparent, and more efficient certification process for applicants and improving the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the labor market. Until January 1, 2015, certification of disability was performed by numerous bodies such as Social Welfare Centers, the Croatian Institute for Health Insurance, the Croatian Institute for Pension Insurance, and educational institutions.Reduction of error, fraud, and corruption in social protection benefits will be achieved by strengthening information systems, oversight, and control procedures. This will create significant fiscal savings over the life of the project.De-institutionalization of vulnerable children and adults by moving them into family-type environments outside of the institutions and improving care and quality standards for these groups will be promoted. This type of care produces better results for the beneficiaries. The goal is to de-institutionalize at least 715 children without parental care, youth with behavioral disorders, adults and children with disabilities, and mentally ill adults by 2016.More tailored services to the unemployed and long-term unemployed will be provided to help them return to the labor market, through, for example, the development of statistical profiling techniques in employment offices as a tool to manage the high case load of its employment officers and to better focus scarce resources.“We are very pleased to support the Croatian Government in its efforts to make the provision of social protection services to the most vulnerable groups better targeted, better organized, and less of a strain on public finances. This is especially important during periods of economic downturn when the demand for social protection is on the rise, while the resources to finance it are increasingly scarce,” highlighted Carlos Piñerúa, World Bank Country Manager for Croatia.Since joining the World Bank in 1993, Croatia has benefited from financial and technical assistance, policy advice, and analytical services provided by the global development institution. To date, the World Bank has supported 54 operations amounting to around US$3.5 billion, and approved 53 grants with a total value of US$70 million. Show Less -

SYDNEY, March 15 2015 – We are deeply concerned for the people of Vanuatu in the face of the devastation caused by Cyclone Pam. We are waiting for official casualty reports and stand ready to help.The... Show More + World Bank's disaster risk management (DRM) team is monitoring the situation closely. The priority at this stage will be for the humanitarian and relief agencies to provide emergency assistance."Our hearts go out to the people of Vanuatu in the wake of the devastation from Cyclone Pam. Vanuatu is ranked as one of the world's most at-risk countries to natural disasters because of its vulnerability and exposure to cyclones," said World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim. "Cyclone Pam is a devastating reminder of the risks of disasters and we will be working closely with the Government to provide any necessary support."The World Bank Group is now looking at every possible avenue and working with partners to support the people of Vanuatu. Given the intensity of the event and reports of severe damage, the World Bank is exploring the possibility of a rapid insurance payout to the Government of Vanuatu under the Pacific Disaster Risk Financing Insurance Program (PCRAFI).The World Bank will be available to assist with a post-disaster needs assessment if requested by the Government. Show Less -

SENDAI, JAPAN, March 16, 2015 – With developing countries the hardest hit by disasters like floods, cyclones, droughts and earthquakes, a new competitive challenge fund is being launc... Show More +hed today to help developing countries design and implement ground-breaking solutions to overcome problems they face assessing disaster risks.The Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR), the World Bank, and the UK Department for International Development (DFID) have joined forces to launch the new fund to help spur new and inventive approaches and partnerships so developing countries can better gauge disaster risks."Finding new ways to use technological innovation to empower communities to build their own solutions to the risk of disasters has proven effective from Nepal to New Orleans," said Rachel Kyte, World Bank Group Vice President and Special Envoy for Climate Change. "We hope this challenge fund can further spread innovation."“The technology to help developing countries prepare for disasters is getting better every day. Early warning systems saved thousands of lives when Cyclone Sidr hit Bangladesh in 2007, aid workers in Haiti used crowd-sourcing software to find people after the 2010 earthquake, and weather forecasting expertise is helping the Philippines predict and prepare for catastrophes like Typhoon Haiyan,” said Desmond Swayne, Minister, International Development, UK.“World-class innovations and data tools can save lives but global investment in these new technologies remains far too low and is not keeping pace with the growing risk countries face. That is why Britain is backing the best new ideas to help the world’s most vulnerable people limit the devastating cost of natural disasters,” he added.The world is facing twice as many natural disasters as 30 years ago, with the annual cost to economies rising from $50 billion to almost $200 billion. To limit the human and financial cost, it is vital that countries understand the risks and how to reduce the impact of natural disasters on individuals, communities and governments. Rapid innovation means the technology already exists to help countries do this, but many of the world’s poorest countries still face difficulties in accessing and using this information.Francis Ghesquiere, Manager, GFDRR, said: “We have great examples of where ‘disruptive innovation’ has transformed our lives, the internet being a classic example. In this field, we have seen the potential for crowdsourcing and participatory mapping sky-rocket, with governments around the world embracing the power of the crowd to collect data on schools, roads, refugee camps and so on. Datasets that would otherwise take years and millions of dollars to collect.”The Challenge Fund aims to help decision makers in developing countries to make the best use of technology and data through new approaches and innovative partnerships between technology companies, NGOs and those at risk from natural disasters.With a Challenge Fund grant, organizations will respond to challenges including how to:Access high resolution digital models of an area’s terrain and elevation;Identify and collect missing data that undermines countries’ ability to understand the risks they face;Develop new approaches to modeling risk; andDevelop innovative approaches to communicating risk information to different stakeholders.In its first phase, the Challenge Fund will provide between $20,000 and $150,000 to up to 20 projects. More information on the fund including how to apply can be found here. About the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and RecoveryThe Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) helps high-risk, low-income developing countries better understand and reduce their vulnerabilities to natural hazards, and adapt to climate change. Working with over 400 partners—mostly local government agencies, civil society and technical organizations—GFDRR provides grant financing, on-the-ground technical assistance to mainstream disaster mitigation policies into country-level strategies, and a range of training and knowledge sharing activities. GFDRR is managed by the World Bank and funded by 25 donor partners.About the Department for International DevelopmentThe Department for International Development (DFID) leads the UK’s work to end extreme poverty. We're ending the need for aid by creating jobs, unlocking the potential of girls and women and helping to save lives when humanitarian emergencies hit. Show Less -

ACCRA, March 14 & 15, 2015 – The World Bank’s Global Information and Communication Technologies Practice in partnership with the iSpace Foundation and National Instruments (NI), has organized a tw... Show More +o-day Negawatt Weekend aimed at developing the local early startup ecosystem by igniting bottom-up innovation around energy efficiency. The event, which is a mix of a “startup weekend” and “ideathon”, surfaced 14 potential solutions to Accra’s most pressing energy efficiency challenges in public, commercial, and residential buildings.“It’s a very interesting and educational program in a sense that it brings a number of stakeholders: private sector, public sector, and academia – for us to share ideas and see that responsibility for bringing energy efficiency is not one person’s job,” said Ms Lydia Sackey, Budget Director of Accra Metropolitan Assembly and a lead government counterpart for the Negawatt Challenge technical assistance activity in Ghana.Ms Cecilia Paradi-Guilford, ICT Innovation Specialist and co-Task Team Leader of the Negawatt Challenge explains the remit of the competition: “Accra is currently experiencing an energy crisis but this is not unique to this city; many rapidly urbanizing cities in Africa and elsewhere are experiencing a similar challenge. Energy efficiency can play a great role to help save energy in these cities on a household level and beyond. The Negawatt Challenge links Accra to Nairobi as well as Dar es Salaam and Rio de Janeiro in the quest to address this common challenge, and aims to contribute towards energy efficient interventions by engaging local startup and technology communities as entrepreneurial problem solvers. As experience in other countries shows, technologists and entrepreneurs are capable of creating lean, innovative, and inclusive approaches and tools to increase urban energy efficiency for their own communities and others.”14 teams took part in the event out of whom four teams were selected by a panel of judges into a 3-week boot camp offering a tailored curriculum on business, design, technical and marketing aspects of product development. At a later stage, two teams with the most viable solutions will enter into an acceleration program offering hands-on training, mentorship, peer-to-peer networking which will allow them to compete internationally with other winning teams from Negawatt participating cities: Dar es Salaam, Nairobi, and Rio de Janeiro. Overall, the event attracted over 70 makers, hackers, coders, aspiring entrepreneurs, and energy specialists who were tasked to tackle one of the six “challenges” on energy efficiency in the buildings sector under the following themes: (i) energy audits; (ii) demand side management; (iii) building an energy data ecosystem; (iv) financing energy efficiency projects; (v) building insulation; (vi) efficiency of appliances.The winning teams include Asor, Flip, Sun Shade, and WI.Asor focuses on demand side management offering a hardware and software solution allowing consumers to estimate power needs of home appliances and to track in real time their electricity consumption status and that of their neighborhood.Flip focuses on demand side management of energy by introducing an energy-saving and time-controlled switch for street lighting and commercial lighting in buildings.Sun Shade focuses on strengthening building insulation by offering an upgrade of a conventional shading system whereby it would absorb sun energy and reuse it to power lighting and, in the future, appliances.WI focuses on strengthening building insulation by offering a turbines cool housing unit by a process known as air exchange."A critical piece in driving efficiencies is empowering stakeholders to access key information from all the pieces of the electrical grid. National Instruments, a global leader providing powerful and flexible solutions that accelerate productivity and drive rapid innovation, is very excited to support innovation in the energy efficiency space in Ghana. We have already seen tremendous practical and impactful ideas, and remain committed to supporting the winning teams through the incubation process,” said Mr Rudi Ngnepi, Group Manager at National Instruments and lead contact for the Negawatt Challenge activities in Ghana, Kenya and Tanzania."Negawatt Weekend has exposed enormous talent in the local startup ecosystem. Though only 4 teams have been selected for the boot camp, we will be giving all teams a one-month membership to keep the momentum alive, and to continue the hard work they put forth this weekend," said Ms Alison Roadburg, Programs Manager at the iSpace Foundation, Accra-based technology and co-working hub and host of the Negawatt Challenge in Ghana.The Negawatt Weekend follows the March 2nd Challenge Definition Day, which convened over 40 government and non government stakeholders to deliberate on the most pressing energy efficiency challenges and resulted in actionable input for the Negawatt Weekend participants. The government participants included a number of decision makers and technical level specialists from Accra Metropolitan Assembly, Electricity Company of Ghana, GRIDCo, Energy Commission, Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development.The Negawatt Challenge is an international competition that aims to convene and empower communities around the world to innovate around urban energy efficiency issues. In addition to Accra in Ghana, the World Bank is organizing a Negawatt Challenge competition in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Nairobi, Kenya; and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. NI is global Terrawatt Sponsor of the Negawatt Challenge, and is offering technical mentorship and training, access to NI’s development tools, and consultation with teams. NI aims to provide custom, integrated hardware and software solutions for the teams so they can build their own inventions in the field of energy efficiency. Similarly, the MIT Climate CoLab is providing an online virtual platform for participants and will host a “virtual track” to the competition that will be open to the global community regardless of location. To implement the Accra chapter of the competition the iSpace Foundation enlisted other local organizations such as the Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST), HubAccra, and others. Show Less -